San Francisco, Day 5: Lee's Sandwiches

Catch up! Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4

So technically it's not really my fifth day in San Francisco, since I flew out early that morning, went to Lee's Sandwiches the night before, and didn't eat the bánh mì I purchased there until I was on the plane flying to New York City. But it was definitely my last taste of SF, and that's what I'm going to go by, dammit.

I've heard Lee's Sandwiches called "the McDonald's of bánh mì," and it's easy to see why. There's something really corporate about the place, both in the design and the display. It's a very strange feeling to associate with a bánh mì place.

The sandwich I ate on the plane had undoubtably suffered from its night in the refrigerator and from being eaten so many hours after it had been assembled, but I'm not sure that the mediocre bread, strange cold cuts, and clunky condiments would really have been that much better fresh. Even though Lee's Sandwiches offers bánh mì that are huge and inexpensive (less than three bucks for a sandwich on a ten-inch baguette), they taste as cheap and mysterious as their price. How I wished for one from Saigon Sandwich instead!

And so ends my San Francisco eating adventures, but only for now, I hope. If there's anything I shouldn't have missed (and I know there was plenty) drop me a note. I intend to go back while I'm still only two hours away!

San Francisco:
Day 1: Civic Center Farmer's Market, Bund Shanghai, Paulette, Miette, Mandalay
Day 2: Slanted Door, Ciao Bella, Acme Bread Company, Ghirardelli, Mangarosa
Day 3: Saigon Sandwich, Flying Fish Grill
Day 4: El Tonyayense, Pica Pica Maize Kitchen, Bi-Rite Creamery, Pagolac
Day 5: Lee's Sandwiches